Vibration simulators are well known, and generally used to simulate the effects of real world phenomena in a controlled environment (such as a laboratory or workshop). Vibration simulators may be used to test mechanical and electrical equipment to ensure it can withstand the environment in which it will eventually be used. For example, vibration simulators may be used in flight simulators to shake a helicopter cockpit (and thereby the cockpit equipment, seat and pilot) to simulate the high frequency vibration experienced in flight. The effects of such vibration on the pilot and surrounding equipment can be monitored and used to improve pilot skills and training and the design of the cockpit equipment.
Vibration simulators can be used in devices such as vibration platforms, anti-vibration platforms, flight simulators, driving simulators, earthquake simulators, g-seats, seat shakers and vehicle dynamics simulators amongst others. Vibration platforms are required the so-called “Level D” flight simulator standard of civil aviation regulatory authorities.
Various movement simulators exist in the art. One such example is U.S. Pat. No. 6,077,078. The subject device is capable of providing motion in various degrees of freedom and is mounted on a two degree of freedom Cartesian slideway in order to provide movement in perpendicular horizontal directions. A problem with this device is that in order to provide translational movement in all three degrees of freedom, the slideway in combination with the motion platform requires a high number of actuators and it is relatively complex and expensive. It also has a large space requirement.
US 2005/0277092 discloses a seat motion simulator which uses three vertically oriented actuators. Each of the actuators is positioned on a horizontal slideway. As is clear from this document, in order to move the seat in a translational degree of freedom, each actuator has to be moved vertically and horizontally. This particular mechanism is complex and large and is not well suited to in-cockpit simulation of vibration.